The Change of Heart
by Armeniel
Summary: Of course, we all know how this story ends... But what about the beginning? 7th year MWPP era, James and Lily.
1. Platform Nine and Three Quarters

_Well, this is my first and only ever HP story. Yey? It's James/Lily, which is my favourite canon pairing, and I'm just trying to do my best bringing the MWPP era to life a little, in what I hope won't be a cringe-worthy way. I hope it's satisfactory at least!_

**Disclaimer: Obviously, HP isn't mine, it all belongs to JKR. In fact, pretty much all of the characters in this story are mentioned by her at some point, no significant OCs come to mind, just a few name-drops here and there where needed.**

Lily Evans, an extraordinarily pretty girl of seventeen, ran a hand through her long, red hair frustratedly, "Marly," she addressed her best friend, Marlene McKinnon, who was standing beside her, "Have you seen Idiot anywhere?"

"Idiot?" Marly questioned, smiling slightly as she scanned Platform Nine and Three Quarters with her bright, blue eyes—she knew exactly whom Lily was referring to when she'd said 'Idiot'. "You mean James Potter?"

Lily frowned, "Of course I mean Potter. Have you seen him?" She was getting impatient; she only had ten minutes left before the train left, and she needed something confirmed.

"Why do you ask?" Marly was finding this all thoroughly amusing.

"Because," Lily sighed, "I'm very afraid that he may be Head Boy to my Head Girl."

"Why in Merlin's name would you think that?" Marly asked, genuinely surprised.

"He said he was, in the owl he sent me," Lily said, attempting to appear glib and flippant, and failing miserably.

Marly was incredibly perceptive when it came to her best friend, and Lily's attempt to appear flippant did not go unnoticed, "If you like James enough not to rip his owls up the moment you get them…"

"I don't!" Lily protested. She almost felt like she might cry, and she couldn't bear the humiliation of crying over Potter, even if it was only Marly that knew. "Well… Alright," she swallowed. "I don't find him hideously unattractive physically. But Marly, his personality!" She exclaimed passionately, "I've seen him sometimes, when he doesn't know anyone's watching, just being really… nice, I suppose is the word. But whenever he's around me, or Sirius, or pretty much anyone and anything that could be classed as an audience, he turns into this… this monster!"

"I think that's a little strong, Lily," Marly giggled.

"Don't laugh," Lily scolded as she tossed her head defiantly, "It's true! You've seen what he's done to Sniv—Severus," she corrected herself, having the good grace to blush slightly at the slip-up she'd so nearly made. "But you understand, don't you? Ja—Potter," she blushed more obviously, "is attractive, I'd be blind not to see that, but I could never be seen to be nice to him, because I just can't endorse that type of behaviour, and I don't want to let him think that I like that stupid act he puts on," her green eyes flashed slightly with a strange mixture of dismay and anger.

"Alright," Marly nodded, ceasing her laughter. This was serious, she realised. She'd never heard Lily admit anything except deep loathing for James, a loathing which Marly had always been deeply suspicious of—if Lily cared enough to hate James so much, she'd always thought, there must be something there. Obviously James had been thinking along the same lines for the last few years, because he'd never given up where Lily was concerned. But now Lily herself was admitting that she found James attractive… It was a step in the right direction, Marly supposed. "Let's talk about it back at school, then, where there's more privacy."

"Or better yet," Lily mumbled grumpily, "let's just forget that I ever said anything, because I still hate Potter as much as ever."

Marly had just been about to reply with something suitably witty, when she spotted something, or rather, someone, that Lily hadn't noticed. The 'someone' crept up quietly behind Lily, holding a finger to his lips as a warning to Marly not to say anything, and listened intently to Lily's mutterings about 'Potter'.

The tall, dark-haired boy grinned a wolfish grin, and suddenly placed a very firm hand on Lily's right shoulder. The girl jumped about a foot in the air in shock, letting out a yell of surprise that converted itself into a yell of annoyance when she spun around to face her attacker. "Sirius Black!" She scowled as Marly and Sirius laughed, "Do you have nothing better to do than spy on me for your prat of a friend?"

"Uh…" Sirius seemed to be considering this for a very long time. Eventually he smirked, "Actually, no, I don't."

"Well, that's absolutely earned you a Detention," Lily glared daggers at him.

"Aww, no fair!" Sirius pouted with another of his trademark smirks, "You can't give me Detention yet, we're not even back at school!"

"Lily, can Platform Nine and Three Quarters really be called 'school'? Maybe he's right," Marly interjected.

"Exactly! See, listen to the pretty girl, Evans," Sirius implored, and Marly blushed, "Besides," he continued, "I'll just get the new Head Boy to discard the Detention, anyway."

"So the rumours are true, then?" Lily groaned.

"Yeah," Sirius looked positively beside himself with happiness, at the contents of the news itself, but also at beautiful, beautiful fate, which was allowing _him_ to be the bearer of such tidings to Lily Evans herself. His grin became slightly malicious, "Prongs is Head Boy! Isn't it great?" He asked Lily, knowing full well that Lily would not think it was great at all.

"Do you even need to _ask_?" Lily scowled.

Marly personally thought that the fact that James had been named Head Boy was wonderful news, although perhaps she would've preferred it to go to Remus, or maybe even Frank Longbottom. James wasn't really responsible or dedicated enough to do what could be classed as a 'good' job, but she was sure that Dumbledore wouldn't've made the decision unless he was sure that James was up to the task. Dumbledore never made bad decisions, after all.

"I'm sure James'll do alright," she cut in, and Lily shot her a glare to let Marly know that she felt betrayed. The other girl merely shrugged—why did Lily have to hate James so much, anyway? It was frustrating, and slightly heartbreaking to the sensitive Marly, to see Lily knock James back time and time again. Couldn't she see by now that James' infatuation wasn't just a schoolboy crush? At first Marly had agreed with Lily that his crush on her was just a passing phase, but a six-year phase? It seemed unlikely, to say the least, and it angered Marly that Lily was too caught up in finding new and inventive ways to reject James to see that he was actually serious about her.

On the other hand, she reasoned with herself, James really did act like a first-class idiot most of the time, _especially_ around Lily.

By the time that Marly had returned to reality from her thoughts of Lily and James, Sirius had managed to goad Lily into yet another argument concerning the two's favourite subject for debate—James Potter.

As far as Sirius and Lily knew, James himself had not yet arrived—late, as usual—but Marly, not being occupied with arguing, watched as a tall, slim boy with messy, dark hair and glasses that covered his hazel eyes made his way very slowly towards the group, arms folded and shoulders hunched, scuffing his shoes as he walked. She was amazed, and she was not the only one—most of the students had stopped mid-conversation to stare at James Potter in this very unusual state. Normally he would be swaggering down the platform, waving to his adoring public, before pulling some stupid but amusing stunt that'd earn him a Detention and make Lily hate him even more.Marly couldn't help but stare with the others at the very unusual sight of James… well, not really looking all that much like himself.

Jameseventually reached the three teenagers, two of which were still finding things to argue about and who seemed to be completely oblivious to his presence in their zeal to out-do one another. The third, Marly, however, was more concerned than perhaps she let on, "You alright, James?"

"Right as rain, thanks, Marly," James nodded, not sounding right as rain at all, and in fact sounding rather the opposite.

As soon as James actually spoke, Sirius snapped out of whatever oblivious state he'd been in previously, "Hey, Prongs!" He grinned, "Why so down? You haven't got Detention already, have you?"

"Not yet," James shrugged pessimistically, "Why, have you?"

"But of course," Sirius nodded, attempting to look ashamed and failing, "Thanks to Evans here," he pointed to Lily, and James found it very hard to look at the girl. When he eventually did, and saw that she was as sickeningly beautiful as she always had been, he turned away slightly, unable to say anymore. Sirius, who had expected James to cut in at that point, looked slightly puzzled, but recovered himself quickly, "But everything's alright, Mr. New Head Boy, because now you're, well, Mr. New Head Boy, you can just discard it, and everything will be right with the world!"

Sirius sounded so very sure of himself and of James that James could not help but feel slightly annoyed. Under normal circumstances and in a good mood he wouldn't've been bothered by Sirius' comment in the least—Sirius knew him better than anyone, they even lived together ever since James' parents had all but officially adopted Sirius. If anyone had any right to judge James' reaction to something, it would be his best friend. Although James rather prided himself on his unpredictability, he was, to those that knew him best, very predictable, in that he would always do the exact opposite of whatever it was that authority demanded of him.

This thought irritated James—was he really that obvious, that incapable of being spontaneous? He glared at Sirius, daring him to feel in any way surprised at James' rather abnormal response, which was a quick, muttered, "Whatever you did, I'm sure you deserved Detention", before he turned on his heel, making his way towards the carriage on the Hogwarts Express that was traditionally reserved for the Head Boy and Girl. He seriously doubted, however, that Lily would want to share it with him. He liked to pretend that that didn't bother him much, but it did. In fact, it bothered him a lot, hence his bad mood—he was finding it very hard to adjust to the idea of another year of being knocked back by Lily. He stored his trunk and Owl cage, collapsing on to a seat in the empty compartment. This was going to be a very long journey… He'd have to apologise to Sirius for acting so oddly back there on the platform, he supposed, but Sirius would want an explanation, and, James thought sadly, he honestly didn't know where to start.

Meanwhile, back on the platform, Marly, Sirius and Lily stood together in shocked silence. Finally, Lily spoke, knowing that someone needed to and it may as well be her, "That was… unexpected".

She didn't know what else to say. Had that really happened? Had James actually disagreed with Sirius, had he really trusted her judgement with a matter of discipline? If she was honest with herself, she severely doubted it, and not unfairly, so she thought. James had just been in a bad mood, and Sirius had been a glaringly easy target with his devil-may-care attitude towards everything, breaking the rules included. But still… When was the last time she'd seen James so serious like that? Probably never, she thought with a small sense of wonder, and a larger sense of something more that she couldn't quite figure out.

Lily was brought back into the real world by the whistle of the train—it was nearly ready to leave. Sirius and Marly were discussing James' strange behaviour, and Lily listened to their conversation with interest. She was not usually one to eavesdrop, but the glimpse of James back there had fascinated her, although she wouldn't admit it, so just this once she made an exception.

"Yeah, he's been a bit off all summer," Sirius was saying, "Ever since he got Dumbledore's Owl telling him that he was Head Boy."

"I thought he'd be really happy about that—it's a bit of a gamble for Dumbledore to take. After all, James isn't exactly the most responsible, compassionate person on the planet, is he?" Marly answered.

"S'pose not," Sirius shrugged reluctantly, not wanting to admit that his friend lacked any of the necessary positive qualities for a Head Boy, but knowing that it was true—James really had been a strange choice, "And I think he is happy about it. Actually, he hasn't really said anything to me at all… I guess it didn't cross my mind to ask him. He's been a bit quiet all summer, like I said—even his parents have noticed the difference. They asked me to keep an eye on him, but that's going to be difficult if the idiot keeps storming off on me all the time, isn't it?" He sighed slightly despairingly, serious for once.

Marly nodded, "I'll help, if you like—no offence, but guys generally prefer to talk to girls about the stuff that really matters to them, because girls're more sensitive. I've never seen James like that before… Well, only after Lily rejected him for the eighty-third time last year, that one was particularly harsh. But even then, I still think he would've discarded your Detention if he could, just to spite her. This is… different. And I think it's probably more than just having to face up to responsibility for a change."

"Thanks," Sirius smiled, charming as always, and kissed her on the cheek. Marly blushed again, hating herself for doing so, but he was so lovely when he smiled… Pity he was so awful the rest of the time, the sensible part of her brain cut in. But she still couldn't help being taken in a bit—he was Sirius Black, after all.

Lily had been watching the exchange with interest, and before she could stop herself, she found herself blurting out the words, "I'll help!"

She couldn't decide whether it was to remind Sirius and Marly that actually, she still existed, so could they please take their slushiness elsewhere, or whether it was to end an awkward silence, or whether it was… Well, maybe it was just because Lily was very compassionate. And the thought of anyone seriously, genuinely unhappy, unhappy enough to get the attention of someone as self-absorbed as Sirius, even if it did have to be Potter, awakened in her that insatiable desire to do whatever she could to help them.

Marly was about to reply to Lily with something that sounded grateful when Sirius cut in angrily—he'd actually forgotten that Lily was still around, and he hadn't wanted her to witness that conversation at all, "Evans," he sighed, "the best thing a stuck-up bitch like you could do for Prongs is to stay away. Just don't put him through anymore, alright?"

"Sirius!" Marly yelled, shocked, hitting him over the head, "Lily, I'm sure he didn't mean it like that…"

Lily shrugged bitterly—she should've known, Sirius never changed, but… "He's right though, isn't he?" She said very quietly, almost to herself, "Ja—Potter and I just aggravate each other. If he's unhappy, it's probably down to me. Not that he doesn't _deserve_ to be unhappy, the way he treats Sniv—Severus, but as long as he stays out of my way, I'll stay out of his. Someone's got to be mature about this, after all, and I suppose it may as well be me."

She, in a move that mirrored James' a few minutes before, turned on her heel, heading for the Head Boy and Girl's compartment that James was currently occupying alone. She wasn't going to sacrifice her spot there that she'd worked so hard for just because Potter was in there already, especially when, if Sirius was to be believed, he wasn't being quite as annoying as usual.

"That was really unnecessary, you know," Marly chided Sirius, "calling Lily a stuck-up bitch. You might dislike her for rejecting James, but she's actually a really nice person, and she happens to be my best friend."

"No, it wasn't unnecessary," Sirius corrected her, "it's about time she heard it. Hard as it may be to believe, I don't just dislike Evans because she won't fall hopelessly in love with Prongs like all the other girls. In fact, I'm just fed up of her Miss Sensitivity act. She's definitely not sensitive towards Prongs, and she treats me like dirt."

"If you gave her a chance…"

"Ah, but she won't give Prongs a chance, will she?" Sirius shot back with equal force, "I wish she would. He's getting so boring, the way he always goes on about her. Anything to shut him up… I think she's influencing him, you know. He seems to have almost developed a vague semblance of a conscience over the summer. He didn't think it was funny at all when I gave an old Muggle's dog fangs and made it attack her," he laughed at the memory.

Marly couldn't help but smile slightly, "Maybe he didn't laugh because it just wasn't funny?"

"That honestly didn't occur to me," Sirius was still sniggering at the picture in his mind of the dog standing up on his hind legs, and the fangs growing as if from nowhere…

"Hey," something had occurred to Marly, "Do you think that's what he's depressed about?"

"Who's depressed?" Sirius asked, completely confused. His brain tended to jump from topic to topic without prior warning, and as far as he was concerned, the conversation about Lily and James was very much over.

"James, your best friend, is depressed," Marly sighed with a slightly tired smile, "And he's probably depressed because of Lily!"

"Hasn't he always been depressed because of Lily? She's been rejecting him for about six years now," Sirius shrugged.

"Right," Marly nodded earnestly, "But before this year, they've always been working against each other, haven't they? They've hated each other's very different idea of morals and responsibility, and then when Lily got made a Prefect, it was sort of a war, wasn't it? The Prefect against the Marauder. They had even more of an excuse to get on each other's nerves. But now they're Head Boy and Girl, they're going to have to be mature and co-operate. And James is going to have to work closely with the one girl who's consistently rejected and denounced him since first year, who also happens to be the girl that he's hopelessly in love with! I mean, that's really got to hurt, hasn't it?"

"Merlin, you make it all sound so dramatic, like the tragic love story that never was," Sirius wrinkled up his nose, concentrating hard, "But I suppose you might have something there. It's like both of their worst nightmares, working with each other, they're bound to be a bit out-of-sorts about it. I should've guessed something was up, Evans normally at least waits until we're back at school to give me Detention."

"Exactly," Marly nodded, "But, good as that theory is, we should probably be getting on the train right about now, seeing as it's leaving…"

No more needed to be said. Very pleased that they'd both stored their trunks on the train a while ago, the two hurried over to the nearest carriage door, which Remus, Peter and Frank Longbottom, the fifth Gryffindor boy in Seventh year, were holding open for them. They jumped on the train just in time, and entered the compartment that Frank indicated was the one occupied by their friends. As well as Remus, Peter, Frank, Sirius and Marly, also in the compartment already sitting down was Greta Catchlove, a seventh-year Ravenclaw, and Alexandra Jackson, another of the seventh-year Gryffindors.

They collapsed into their seats, slightly out-of-breath—neither of them played Quidditch, after all, and while Sirius went running occasionally, Marly did nothing of the sort, and neither were exactly the height of physical fitness in the same way that James, Captain of the Quidditch team, was.

"Have either of you two seen James or Lily?" Remus asked Marly and Sirius as they recovered their breath after their mad dash. "None of us have seen anything of them since we arrived."

"Long story," Sirius shrugged with a wave of his hand. "More importantly, who's for a game of Exploding Snap?"

Remus and Marly both frowned slightly at Sirius' dismissal of the subject—Marly because she thought that it probably should be mentioned to the others how out-of-sorts James and Lily both had seemed, and Remus because he had guessed that there was more to Sirius' flippant wave than he'd let on. He resolved to challenge him on it later. In the meantime, he began to shuffle the deck of cards in preparation for a good game of Exploding Snap.

Meanwhile, Lily was standing on the threshold of the Head Boy and Girl's compartment, wondering what, if anything, she could say to James in this state—she was used to dealing with an immature, happy-go-lucky, smug, arrogant prat, not a seriously unhappy, moody prat.

"Potter?" She said hesitantly as she entered—she hadn't meant it to sound like a question.

James mumbled something, which may or may not have been "Evans", in response. He didn't even turn around to look at her, because looking at her hurt, and he was fed up of hurting over something so stupid.

Moved slightly for some reason unknown even to her—maybe it was the desolate tone of his voice, or the way he didn't even turn around to acknowledge her, or maybe both—she stored her trunk quietly and then sat down softly in the seat opposite him, crossing her legs and folding her hands neatly on top of them.

James couldn't believe that she was actually sitting within a five-mile radius of him, let alone in the opposite seat, and he didn't really know how to handle it—he'd never been in this situation before.

"James…"

She'd even called him by his first name… Not 'Idiot', not even 'Potter', but his first name. This was definitely different.

"James, if you had a problem, and—"

"The only problem in my life right now is you, okay?" He cut in, scowling. After all she'd done, she really expected him to just tell her what the matter was, just like that? Especially when it involved her so heavily.

"So Sirius was right, then," she sighed sadly, "I'll just go, you know—"

"What did Sirius say?" James cut in once more, his curiosity getting the better of his annoyance.

"Oh, basically that the last thing you needed right now was me complicating things," she shrugged, looking down at the floor. This was much more awkward than she could've ever imagined.

"Is he mad? You're the _only_ thing I need," James muttered to himself, not loudly enough for Lily to hear.

"What?" Lily frowned at him, not able to hear his mumbled words.

"I said," James couldn't help but blush slightly, and he hated himself for it—Lily, however, thought it was quite significant. He had never used to blush when he asked her out all those ninety-six times before, he had always been confidence and arrogance embodied. "That you're the _only_ thing I need."

"Are you really asking me out _again_?" Lily sighed, "Because I haven't had time to come up with any new and inventive ways to reject you yet this year."

"Don't worry, I don't mind the occasional unimaginative rejection," James shrugged, "After all, it's the ninety-seventh time I've asked you, you're bound to be running out of ideas."

For some reason, that comment really hit home for Lily, "You've…" Her tone of voice was different—gentle, quiet, "You've counted? Every single rejection?"

So James really was serious about her after all—obviously he was, if he'd counted every single rejection, every single blow to his self-confidence that she'd inflicted… Not that he didn't have enough to spare. But all these years she'd thought that he was an arrogant idiot who just wanted her as a trophy, who just wanted to win over the one girl he didn't have a chance with… And maybe it had started off that way, in fact, she was sure it had, but it wasn't that way anymore. She realised suddenly what had made her want to help James back there, what had prompted her to say, "I'll help", to Sirius. It was seeing James vulnerable, seeing him as a real person with real feelings, not just hexing Severus senseless at every opportunity. And she'd had no idea that he'd had feelings at all, not realising how much she was hurting them when she knocked him back…

Still, she knew it wasn't really her fault—James had been putting on an act around her for the last six years, one that he'd never dropped, not once. In fact, they'd never even had a serious conversation before now. And maybe that was what made the real difference today—actually seeing him affected by her, seeing the hold she had over him. She couldn't believe that out of all the girls in the school, it was her that had occupied James Potter's thoughts for the last six years, and she still couldn't understand why, but suddenly the idea didn't seem quite so strange anymore.

"Every single one," James nodded, aware that this was a significant moment. "I don't just want you 'cause you're pretty, you know," he added, "You're just… different, and I like that. A lot. So much so that I've put up with ninety-seven rejections, counting that one a fewseconds ago."

"Ninety-six," Lily muttered. She gulped, and said, more decisively, "Ninety-six."

"What?" James stared at her, "No, ninety-seven. I should know, I've counted."

"No…" Lily's hands twisted in her lap in a nervous gesture, "The last one doesn't count."

"Why?"

"Because it wasn't a rejection," she smiled, and leaned over the table that separated the two, kissing James lightly on the cheek.

"Wait, what?" James shook his head in complete astonishment—this was absolutely the last thing that he'd ever expected to happen. After all these years, he'd all but given up on Lily, and yet he couldn't quite bring himself to give up completely. She always had been, and always would be, the girl for him.

If Sirius had noticed a slight change in James over the summer, then that was because there had in fact been one. Not, as Sirius suspected, because of Lily's influence (well, only a bit), but rather because James had realised, after receiving the letter telling him that he was Head Boy, that being a Head Boy was a huge responsibility. His initial reaction had been that either Dumbledore was actually mad, or that Dumbledore genuinely wanted to see Hogwarts descend into chaos, and James had been looking forward to getting his friends out of trouble and hopefully being immune to punishment as he led the whole school into disrepute and disorder—it all sounded like excellent fun.

But after a few days, entirely off of his own accord he'd begun to wonder how exactly that would work, what would happen to the school and everyone in it if he did all that he planned. He began to discover that there was perhaps more to himself than he'd previously thought, and he began to find that dreaded sense of responsibility that had so evaded him for the past seventeen years of his life. And as he wondered and discovered, so he realised that it just didn't make sense. As long as he was Head Boy, he couldn't stay the same person as he had been before—_that_ James was a carefree, obligation-free James, and as he was now, he had both cares _and_ obligations. He had to help Dumbledore run the school as smoothly as possible, otherwise people's futures could be affected—if James desecrated the Common Room every night, how would his friends, the other Seventh years, study for their NEWTs effectively? NEWTs affected your future, James knew, and he hated to think that his friends might not get the jobs they wanted justbecause of his lack of responsibility.

For another thing, James secretlyadmired Dumbledore, and he hoped that Dumbledore had also seen something more in James, and that maybe him making James Head Boy had been his way of bringing those characteristics out into the open and forcingJames himselfto use them, unless he wanted to lose his position. And once he found out that Lily Evans was Head Girl, James had decided that he definitely didn't want to lose his position.

Not that he hated Snivellus any less, or that he wouldn't still use his brain for the occasional prank. A leopard never completely changes its spots, after all. He had just resolved to try and live up to Dumbledore's expectations as Head Boy, and hopefully win over Lily in the bargain.

And he couldn't quite believe that one of the items on his wish list might actually really be happening.

"I know you think I hate you, right?" Lily said, and James nodded, dazed, "And I do. Well, I did. I mean, I don't hate… Oh, this is complicated," she was confusing herself, "I hate you when you hex Sniv—Severus, I hate you when you're arrogant, and over-confident, and when you treat everyone who isn't Sirius, Remus or Peter like dirt. You've never been able to drop that act around me before, and I've seen you sometimes, when you didn't know I was watching, when you were actually nice, and… Well… I liked you then. I just didn't want to think that you could get away with treating everyone like that. And just then, I suppose… Well, it sounds stupid, but you actually sort of stuck up for me back there, in some strange way. When I gave Sirius Detention. You trusted my judgement, and even though that was probably just because you were in a bad mood, it still sort of meant something, because... Well,I think that we'd be able to have an equal relationship now. I mean, I'll compromise a bit, as long as you do, too. And please say something, because I feel stupid," she rambled.

"I… don't know what to say…" James smiled slightly, "You just… Well, what would I have to do?"

"Stay like this."

"What, depressed?"

"No, don't be silly," Lily allowed herself to smile and, once they were both smiling, they were both able to relax slightly, "I just want you to be yourself, okay? I know it's a ridiculously cliché thing to say, but your Mr. Universe act that you're so accustomed to putting on that it almost seems like it's who you are is just as cliché and tired as that saying, if not more so. And Mr. Universe _isn't_ who you are, James, because no one is that arrogant and generally terrible," James was about to say something, but Lily pre-empted him, "And no, Sniv—Severus isn't that terrible, either. Which brings me on to my second condition—no hexing anyone just for the hell of it, including Sniv—Severus. You're Head Boy now, and with that comes responsibilities. And that fits neatly with my third condition, which is that you have to do your fair share of the work as Head Boy, because I'm not doing it all. And the fourth and final condition is that you tell me I'm special, because every girl wants to hear that," she smiled shyly.

James didn't even need to think about it—he'd give up anything for Lily. Maybe that made him weak, maybe insane, or maybe stupid, maybe even all three, but he was happy to be any and all of those things if it meant that Lily would consent to going out with him, "You've been the only girl I've really ever wanted for the whole six years I've known you. You're special, okay? You're bloody special. _Now_ will you kiss me?"

"Of course," she grinned and, true to her word, she leaned over the table that was separating them once more, and kissed him once, softly and sweetly, on the lips. She drew away, "And I'll go out with you, too. But for an experiment, let's see how long we can keep it secret, okay? I don't think you're messing about, not anymore, but just to check, I want you not to tell anyone about us. Let them guess, let them speculate, but don't confirm anything. And then I'll be able to see that I'm not just a trophy girlfriend for you."

"Done," James nodded, "It'd be best to keep this from Sirius for as long as possible, anyway. He'd probably commit suicide or something, and then the female population of Hogwarts will be left broken-hearted, and as Head Boy and Girl it'll be us that has to clear up the mess."

She laughed, and James laughed, too. Neither of them at that moment could believe exactly how lucky they were to have seen a different side of the other.

And both of them were trying very hard not to think about the logistics of keeping their new relationship under-wraps…


	2. The Big Secret

_Thanks for the reviews, guys I hope the second chapter's okay, too. _

**Disclaimer: It's not mine, it's JKR's, I'm only borrowing it.**

"Out of my way, Padfoot, or it's Detention for you," James smirked as he shoved Sirius to one side in an attempt to make room for the contents of his trunk on his bed, on which Sirius was currently perched precariously. "Then you'd have two Detentions already, and the Leaving Feast is only just over."

Sirius mock-scowled, grinning, "Hey, shouldn't Dumbledore have offered you a private room or something, as Head Boy? I wish you'd taken it. _Anything_ to get you out of my hair."

"Oh, shut up," James threw his pillow at Sirius and shoved him off the bed, collapsing on his bed himself and putting his hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. All he could think about was Lily, Lily, Lily, and it was driving him crazy. She'd actually kissed him, they were really going out… And he couldn't boast about it to anyone. Damn. Still, that was the point of it, wasn't it? This was to show Lily he was really serious about her—and he was, so he'd keep quiet, even if it killed him.

"Hey, what's with you, mate?" Sirius sat up suddenly from where he'd been lying on the floor after James had shoved him there a few seconds earlier. "You're _thinking_."

"Am not," James denied the accusation very unconvincingly.

"Yes you are," a grin spread over Sirius' face, "You're _thinking_, aren't you? What're you thinking about? Anything you want to share with your best friend Padfoot?"

"No," James muttered, "You know, if I hadn't thrown my pillow at you already, I would absolutely be throwing it at you now."

"Well tough, you've got nothing left to throw at me, so that means you have to talk! What's so important that you're trying to hide it from me, hmm? The Marauders don't _hide_ things, Prongs. Bestest friends forever and ever, all secrets shared, especially the interesting ones. So if you don't tell me what's up, I may have to break into the Potions cupboard and—mmmf! Mmmf!"

Before Sirius could finish, James had shut him up by pushing some of his dirty socks into Sirius' open mouth. The other boy choked and gagged, trying to tug the socks out of his mouth as James looked on, laughing.

"What the…? What in Merlin's name is…? No, wait, don't tell me, I don't want to know," Remus couldn't hide his small smirk as he entered the Dormitory and was greeted by the sight of Sirius with James' dirty socks in his mouth. He just stared at James lying lazily on his bed making no move to help Sirius, and figured it out for himself—he'd seen enough of James and Sirius' pointless arguments to know that this was no different. Without a word, he removed the socks from Sirius' mouth and chucked them at James, who kicked them back on to the floor.

"Hey!" Sirius yelled as soon as he could speak again, "In Merlin's name, Prongs, you could've at least chosen _clean_ socks! Who takes dirty socks to school, anyway?"

"Well, me, obviously," James raised his eyebrows with a serene smile. Sirius growled and muttered something indecipherable under his breath before storming out of the dormitory, giving the vague excuse of going to find Peter for a game of Wizard Chess.

Remus knew he had to tread carefully. After talking to Marly, he'd heard about James' thoroughly bad mood this morning, and yet at the Feast, James had seemed more cheerful than Remus had ever seen him—he couldn't quite figure it out. He was sure, however, that James was unlikely to tell him anything, especially if it was something he wouldn't've even told Sirius. And judging by the socks-in-the-mouth incident, Sirius had definitely tried to find out what it was that was altering James' mood so frequently and radically. Still, he had to try.

"James…"

"Yes, Moony my friend," James sat up, staring at Remus with mock-seriousness in his eyes. He was desperately trying to avoid Remus asking him about Lily directly, and he was definitely going to soon—Remus only ever used James' real name when he was being deadly serious.

"Can you be serious for one second?" Right on cue.

"Uh… No. I'm absolutely incapable of being serious," James shook his head, and then added, "But for you, and _only_ for you, I'll try."

"Right. Well… Is there something up that I should know about, James?" There was genuine concern in Remus' voice.

"There is indeed something up, but it's not something that you should know about," James couldn't quite bring himself to lie to Remus out-right, after all, especially when he could see that his friend was actually quite worried about him. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm more tired than a very tired thing, so I'm going to sleep. See you in the morning," he pulled the curtains around his four-poster bed without any further words.

"It's only nine o'clock, James," Remus protested, but his heart wasn't really in it. He sighed frustratedly—when James was being difficult like this, he'd discovered from previous experience that it was best just to leave him to whatever it was he was thinking about. Maybe it was the easy way out, he thought guiltily, but it had always worked in the past. James was fine, James always had been fine.

But he couldn't help but wonder, just a bit, if James' mood-swings should be worrying him more. After all, it was usually Sirius that was the designated moody one. James normally took one mood and stuck with it for at _least_ a day.

James, for once, had nothing more to say to his friend. So he lay, pretending to be asleep, until he heard Remus' soft footsteps as he left the dormitory. Then, and only then, did he sit up, drawing his knees into to his chest and sighing again, "Damn."

Not only was he having trouble keeping his relationship with Lily a secret from his friends already, he was also stuck pretending to be asleep, and it was only _nine o'clock_.

Meanwhile, Marly had managed to convince the other Seventh year Gryffindor girls that they'd really much prefer to be in the Common Room, at least for another hour, which conveniently gave her and Lily the dormitory to themselves.

"Now I can tell you," Lily grinned, whispering just to keep the air of secrecy in the atmosphere.

"What? You're killing me with this stupid secret, you know. I haven't been able to guess in the slightest what's making you so happy, especially after your mood this morning," Marly sighed frustratedly.

"Well, once you shut up, you'll know, won't you? So do you promise on Merlin's life not to tell _anyone_ this, on pain of death, especially not the Marauders, or whatever it is they're calling themselves now?"

"It's always been the Marauders. And yes, I promise."

"Alright. Well," she gulped, looked down at the floor, and then looked straight back up at Marly, as if trying to find the courage to tell her best friend her secret. Well, not really her secret—her and James' secret. "James asked me out."

"For the ninety-seventh time," Marly raised her eyebrows and let out the breath she'd been holding—Lily had promised that this was going to be something exciting, and if this was all that her best friend had to say, she may as well be down in the Common Room with Alexandra and the rest. "What's new about that?"

"Has everyone been counting the rejections except me?" Lily frowned. Marly nodded, and Lily shrugged, continuing, "Anyway. It _is_ new, because _this_ time I said yes."

Marly gasped. She didn't say anything, she just reached over and hugged Lily very hard for a very long time.

"Marly," Lily gasped through the stranglehold Marly had on her, "I think if you keep hugging me, I'll die before James and I have our first real date…"

"But… But why… How…?"

"You mean how did he ask me out, and why I accepted now of all times? Umm, well, he asked me out in the usual way, but he only muttered it under his breath, so I didn't hear, and then when I asked him to repeat it, he blushed. And why now… Well, because… Alright, I was wrong, I've been wrong all these years—he's not an arrogant prat. He just pretends to be. But really… he's actually quite sweet. When Sniv—Severus isn't around, anyway."

Marly nodded in wonder, agreeing, and then shrugging her shoulders. "I… I… Wow… I don't know what to say, I just… Hey, this isn't right—you should be the inarticulate one, you're the one that's just agreed to go out with _James Potter_ of all people! The female population of Hogwarts is going to _kill_ you, you know—Alexandra's had her eye on James for years, even though it's always been obvious he was crazy for you."

Lily laughed, "Alexandra will have to deal with it, then, but right now we're trying to keep it quiet. Which is why I'm only telling you, and James isn't allowed to tell anyone, even and _especially_ Sirius."

"Sirius will commit suicide," Marly snorted.

"That's what James said. Why would you both say that?" Lily asked, genuinely puzzled—wouldn't Sirius be happy that James was happy? It made no sense to her.

"Because he hates you even more than James pretended to for all those years," Marly shrugged, "Mainly because you kept rejecting James, I think, even though he says it's not because of that—oh, and you keep putting him in Detention and giving him lines, which wouldn't exactly endear you to him. But you saw him back on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters—he just… won't be fine with this at all. After all, it's been Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, with Padfoot and Prongs as best friends, forever and ever. I'm sure Remus and Peter will take it well, they're very reasonable, but Sirius isn't known for his ability to remain calm under pressure. What's he going to think about it being Moony, Wormtail and Padfoot, then Prongs and Evans?"

"Well, like Alexandra, he'll just have to deal with it. But you're right—not yet, that'd just be _asking_ for trouble," Lily said matter-of-factly.

"But since you've told one person, shouldn't James get to tell one person, too? It's really hard to keep a secret like this."

"You're right," Lily nodded, looking concerned all of a sudden, "Merlin, I've broken my own deal by telling you in the first place! If I've told one person, then he should get to tell one person, too, it's only fair. But if he tells Sirius…"

"He's not stupid, Lily," Marly ran her hands through her long-ish, wavy-ish blonde hair in frustration, "All the stuff I just told you? Well, he's Sirius' best friend. That'll have been going through his mind for the past few hours. Just go and knock on the boys' Dormitory door, alright? I'll distract the others."

"What if there's someone else in the Dormitory with him?"

"There won't be—you know James, he'll have kicked them all out so he can brood in peace. Just _go_."

"Okay," Lily smiled, and bounced off the bed, opening the Dormitory door and hurrying down the stairs into the Common Room, ready to disappear up the stairs that led to the boys' Dormitory at the opportune moment.

Marly followed more slowly, still trying to take it all in—after all these years, James and Lily had finally got together… That was a turn-up for the books. Honestly, although she'd long hoped that it would happen for poor, miserable James' sake, she'd never quite believed that Lily would ever come round and see the better side to the Potter who used to constantly hex Snivellus for no apparent reason. But somehow, James must've managed to convince her… And a good thing too. Now maybe both of them would be able to relax and enjoy Seventh year, despite the rumours that were spreading through the school like lightning about the increasing danger of life outside Hogwarts.

"Anyone for a Wizard Chess tournament?" She announced loudly as she grabbed the chess board out of the hands of a protesting Peter and waved it around in the air.

"Yeah, but you just stole the board," Peter grumbled and sighed.

"Indeed I did, Pettigrew. But I'll give it back when it's your turn to play!" She knew she was being overly exuberant, but she had to distract them enough for Lily to slip up to James unnoticed. She was thankful at least that Sirius, Remus, Peter and Frank were all present and that her hunch was correct—James was indeed alone. Not that he would be for long.

"Whatever," Peter muttered.

"What's got into you, McKinnon? You had some good news or something that you want to share with the rest of us?" Sirius had noticed Marly's exaggerated enthusiasm and was perplexed by it. But immediately he was distracted by the prospect of good news, "Hey, they haven't taken Dungbombs off of the 'Illegal in School' list, have they? That'd definitely be good enough news to put you in a good mood…"

Although Marly was pleased that Sirius had noticed the change in her, she was a bit disappointed that he was calling her McKinnon instead of Marly, even though she hated herself for it—she didn't want to fall for Sirius Black, and she'd avoided him for all these years because she didn't want to be like the other girls, just crawling at his feet and begging him to go out with her. She wouldn't sink that low. But she couldn't help but wonder occasionally, if things were different, if she'd managed to talk to him more, get to know the real Sirius Black…

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" Sirius laughed, and Peter took advantage of Marly's silence to snatch back the chessboard and start a game with Remus, Frank, Alexandra and a few of the other Gryffindors.

"No," Marly muttered after a long time, "Not as such."

There was no 'real' Sirius Black, no one behind the front. That boy, the one laughing at or with her, she couldn't tell, from his armchair by the fireplace, _was_ the real Sirius. And she couldn't kid herself—she liked him, just like all the other girls did. But there was nothing else there. She hated herself for even thinking like this. She wiped away angry tears from her eyes.

Sirius was still sitting by the fireplace. He'd waved a "No, thanks" to joining in the chess tournament—he didn't really feel like it, he'd eaten too much food to think properly—and at this moment had his dark brown eyes trained on Marly's blue ones. He'd seen the false enthusiasm, and now he saw the tears too. It vaguely amused him. There was obviously something going on in her head, and he thought it'd be quite good fun to see if he could work out what exactly it was. He enjoyed playing mind games with people, after all, and Marly seemed like an easy enough person to figure out.

"Why're you staring at me?" Marly met his gaze, sounded perhaps more aggressive than she meant to.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Sirius asked, using the famous Black charm.

"Talk about what?" Marly was puzzled, and slightly nervous—he couldn't've figured her out already, could he?

"Don't you want to be an Auror, Marly?"

Marly nodded, concentrating too hard on not crying, or doing or saying anything else stupid in front of Sirius, that she didn't realise he'd called her Marly and not McKinnon.

"Well, then you're going to have to learn to hide your emotions. If I, the most self-absorbed boy on the planet besides Prongs, can see that you're crying, then you're obviously doing _something_ wrong."

"I'm not crying," Marly denied weakly.

"You're going to have to work on the denials, too," Sirius laughed, "Come on," he moved over, so that there was enough room for two people in the armchair he was currently occupying alone, "Tell me about whatever it is you're crying about."

"I can't," Marly shook her head.

"Why not?" Sirius shrugged, running a hand through his black hair and smiling—he couldn't believe how easy this girl was to manipulate. This was going like clockwork. She was sort of cute, though, when she was depressed.

"Because… I just can't," she couldn't look at him anymore, and broke her gaze, turning her back on him to join the Chess tournament. She wasn't going to let Sirius Black mess with her head, she would make sure of it—she'd seen him do this to other girls, and he always got bored and moved on to the next one. It would be no different with her.

Sirius merely shrugged again, and moved back so that his frame now filled the armchair. It was only the start of the year—there was plenty of time left, he'd figure her out easily enough. He was always up for a challenge, after all.

At the same time as Marly was torturing herself over Sirius, Lily was knocking on James' Dormitory door, "James?"

"Lily?" James hadn't expected to see her until at least the next morning. He smiled, suddenly filled with energy, and bounced off the bed, opening the door quickly to let her in. "Are you crazy? If anyone comes up here… I thought we were supposed to be keeping this a—" She kissed him once, hard, and they both laughed, "secret," James finished his sentence.

"That's what I've come about. I know, I _know_ we said that we were going to keep this quiet. But I had to tell someone or I was going to go crazy, especially when I had to pretend to hate you at dinner, so I told Marly, but I swore her to secrecy and she won't tell anyone, I promise. So I figured that it would be unfair if I asked you to keep it completely secret, so since I've told one person, you can tell one person, too—someone that you trust not to react badly, or spread this around, or—"

"Which rules out Sirius," James smirked. "Although since he's my best friend, once he finds out about this, and believe me, he will, he's going to be mad I didn't tell him first."

"But he'd only commit suicide if you told him," Lily giggled, "He hates me, remember?"

"Well, he might ignore both of us for a few weeks," James sighed resignedly. "But alright. Who do you want me to tell, then?"

"Well, that's up to you," Lily shrugged, "But I would say not Sirius, since he won't react well at all. Not any of the girls, because they'll tell everyone before you've even finished your sentence. Which leaves Remus and Peter."

"Remus is already worried about me, I'll tell him."

"Okay. Want me to send him up?"

"What, I have to tell him _now_?" James frowned.

"What better time than the present?"

"I'll never understand you, Lily Evans," James shook his head in wonder, "Everything's always got to be 'now'. You're one of the most impatient people I've ever met."

"Not true! I waited six years for you to stop being an idiot before I agreed to go out with you."

"I'll _always_ be an idiot," James grinned.

"True," Lily nodded her head, smiling, "But now you're _my_ idiot. I'll send Remus up," she kissed him once more, and then hurried out of the Dormitory.

She scanned the Common Room for Remus, and spotted him eventually, laughing with Peter as they played a game of Wizard Chess, Alexandra, Frank and the rest cheering them on. Damn, how was she going to get him alone? Especially without Sirius, who was perceptive only when it was inconvenient, seeing anything.

Luckily, Remus had already spotted her hanging around looking awkward, staring at him, out of the corner of his eye. He waited until the game had finished and then made his excuses, despite Peter's protests that since Remus was the winner, he had to play another match, "Frank'll take my place," he assured Peter, and Frank nodded, taking Remus' seat as Remus headed over towards Lily.

"Thanks," Lily muttered under her breath as Remus stopped beside her.

"No problem. What's up?" Remus kept his voice low, too—it really must be important if Lily was being so secretive and unlike her usual self.

"James needs to see you. _Now._ He's got something to tell you," Lily insisted.

"What the--?" Remus started to question her, but was cut off by a determined Lily.

"Just _go_, okay?"

Remus shrugged and nodded, heading up the stairs to the Dormitory and entering without bothering to knock—James was expecting him after all, "Prongs?"

"Err, hi, mate," James looked incredibly uneasy, perched on the end of his bed and twisting his hands in his lap.

"I knew you wouldn't be going to sleep at nine o'clock," Remus smiled as he took a seat on his own bed, crossing his legs and resting his chin on his hand as he prepared himself to listen to whatever it was James had to say.

"Right," James nodded, laughing weakly at Remus' joke, "So, I don't know what Lily told you…"

"Just that you had something important to tell me."

"Well, I do. That is… That… First of all, you have to promise not to tell _anyone_. And I _mean_ anyone, not even Sirius—and you'll understand why you can't tell him in a minute, once I tell you what it is."

"I promise."

"Okay. Erm, alright then," James stuttered.

"Spit it out, Prongs," Remus looked on in amusement—whatever it was, it was certainly affecting James' ability to speak. "I haven't got all night."

"LilyandIaregoingout."

"If I'm not mistaken," Remus was still trying to make sense of James' words since they'd all run together into one, "You just said that you and Lily were going out, but that can't be true…" He shook his head in wonder.

"Why?" James grinned.

"Because she hates you!" Remus protested, "She's hated you for the last six years, she… You changed her mind?"

James nodded, "Yeah, I don't know how, but I did! So now we're going out! We're trying to keep it really quiet, but since Lily told one person, I get to as well. I was going to tell Sirius, but—"

"If Sirius hears, he'll commit suicide," Remus nodded.

At that precise moment, Lily and Marly were heading for bed. Marly's eyes were still red, and Lily was occupied with trying to find out why exactly Marly had been crying. And that meant that neither of them saw Sirius decide that it was time to head for bed, and trudge wearily up the Dormitory stairs, waving a vague "G'night" to Peter, Frank and the girls.

He would've waltzed in without knocking, but instead, he heard a snatch of the conversation that caught his attention. In fact, the sentence he heard was, 'If Sirius hears, he'll commit suicide', and he recognised the voice as definitely Remus'. He put his ear against the door, listening hard, trying to catch the rest of the conversation, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Exactly," James was continuing the conversation, oblivious to the fact that Sirius could hear his every word.

Prongs? Sirius thought angrily. Prongs was in on this too?

"I can't believe she really said yes," Remus was still struggling to hide his amazement, "But congratulations are in order, then? May you have a long and happy future together, and all that," they both grinned, "Seriously, though," Remus continued, "We've got to keep this as quiet as possible. If Sirius gets wind of this, then he'll…"

Sirius realised that he wasn't going to catch the name of the 'she' anytime soon, so now was as good a time as any to ask his friends what the hell they were up to, keeping secrets from him.

"Then I'll what?" Sirius pushed open the Dormitory door without knocking to give warning, and stormed into the room, glaring first at James, and then at Remus, "Future with who? What're you two keeping from me?"

Remus resembled a deer caught in headlights. His face couldn't've physically been any paler shade of white without him not being alive to see it.

"You ever heard of knocking, mate?" James, on the other hand, was as calm and cool as ever.

This just infuriated Sirius more, "Bollocks to knocking, _Potter_!" He spat frustratedly, "What're you two whispering about?"

"The fact that we're whispering, Padfoot old pal, suggests it's a _secret_. You shouldn't've been eavesdropping, then you'd never have known that the secret existed in the first place," James shrugged, completely unaffected by Sirius calling him by his last name—he'd seen enough of Sirius' moods to know how to deal with them, after all.

"Potter, do you never shut up? You've got an answer for bloody _everything_!" Sirius yelled, really angry now. He was still thinking clearly enough, however, to know that he wouldn't get any sort of an answer from James—James was just too good at manipulating him, they knew each other too well. He turned to Remus, fixing the boy with a glare that could've killed a cat, "Since Potter's being such an arse, Remus, _you_ can tell me what in Merlin's name is going on here."

"Err…" From the frightened look on Remus' face, it was quite possible that the glare would soon kill him instead of a cat.

"You know what, _mate_," James scowled, hauling himself off the bed and moving quickly so that he stood in between the terrified Remus and the furious Sirius, fixing Sirius with as horrible a glare as Sirius was fixing him with, "Leave Remus out of this. It's _my_ secret, and I told him not you because I knew you'd react like _this_! Like you _always_ do! Just…"

"Just what?" Sirius took advantage of James' loss for words, "Just bugger off so you two can have your cosy chat? You haven't even fucking given me a _chance_ to react! Don't you trust me?"

"Oh, don't play that card," James shoved Sirius hard, unbalancing him, "I'd die for you, alright? And that's a bloody serious thing to say when things are as they are!"

"Like hell it is," Sirius shook his head, shoving James back as he snarled, "I know you better than anyone, _Potter_, and you'll say whatever the _hell_ you want to manipulate people. I just never thought you'd try it with your _best friend_!"

"Maybe you don't know me as well as you thought you did, then," James hissed. He stepped out from between Sirius and Remus and walked over to his trunk, snatching his Invisibility Cloak from it before directing one last deadly glare at Sirius, and failing to acknowledge Remus' presence as he stormed out of the Dormitory in much the same way that Sirius had entered it.

Remus' quiet voice broke the silence, "You've really got the wrong idea, you know. It's not that James doesn't _want_ to tell you—he does, more than anything."

"So why can't he?" Sirius glowered, caught in between anger and sadness at watching his best friend leave.

"He just _can't_," Remus insisted, "And he _would_ die for you, you know."

Anger won out, "Why do you always take James' side, anyway?" Sirius yelled at Remus.

"I don't, I—" Remus stuttered, but was rescued from answering by the sound of the door opening.

"What's with all the yelling? And where's Prongs running off to at this time of night?" Peter had decided it was time for bed, and had seen James hurrying out of the Portrait Hole, just about to put on the Cloak, as he'd been walking up the stairs. He'd decided that James looked in too bad a mood to get any sense out of whatsoever, and had been hoping to get some sense out of Remus or Sirius. But, on opening the Dormitory door and being greeted by the sight of an angry Sirius looming over a frightened Remus, he figured that it was doubtful he'd get any sense out of either of them.

"Ask your buddy Lupin," Sirius scowled, "And if he lets you in on the little conspiracy plot he and James are hatching, do me a favour and don't bother me with it. I'm going to bed."

"Sirius…" Remus pleaded, trying to placate his furious friend.

"Oh, fuck off," Sirius growled, and stomped over to his bed, collapsing on it and drawing the curtains with a flourish. He lay back on the bed itself, cursing James and Remus and Peter and anyone else who was so set on keeping whatever this was from him. And cursing Evans, because whenever James acted strangely, it was _always_ to do with her. Bloody Evans.

"What…?" Peter would've continued with the question, but Remus had already drawn the curtains of his own four-poster, wanting to be alone with his thoughts. "Never mind," Peter muttered to himself, sighing and raising his eyebrows, "I'll ask Prongs when he gets in. He might come back soon."

"He won't," a muffled voice came roughly from the direction of Remus' bed.

"I'll kill him if he does," a muffled voice, this time from Sirius.

"Right," Peter shrugged, and drew the curtains of his own four-poster. This all would've blown over by tomorrow… At least, he hoped so. Once James came back, anyway. Until then, both he and Remus separately resigned themselves to bearing the brunt of both Sirius and James' anger.

James was currently standing on the Quidditch Pitch, Invisibility Cloak lying forgotten on the ground in his anger, arms folded, kicking the same patch of ground repeatedly, "Bloody Sirius, always trying to get involved in things he doesn't understand, always has to create bloody drama…"

He was so intent on kicking the ground and bad-mouthing Sirius to himself that he didn't hear the footsteps behind him.

"Ah, Mr. Potter," a voice spoke, and James whirled around to face its owner, anger forgotten. "What're you doing out after-hours on the first night of the new school year?"

"Oh, shit."


End file.
